Demons Within
by MaximusWang
Summary: His eyes shot open, glowing in the darkness.His mind raced with questions.Where was he? What was this place? How did he get here?The one question that plagued his mind was WHO was he?And the answer came as a resounding 'I don't know...'
1. The Escape

**So a new FFVII fic. I thought it might be fun, so it's a little AU re-telling. Mind you I haven't played the game in several years so some of the details might be off. If there's a huge mistake and it really bothers you, tell me and I'll try to fix it. **

**Warning: Might contain Crisis Core spoilers and most definitely contains FFVII spoilers. **

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah SquareEnix is all-powerful. All worship SquareEnix.**

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His eyes shot open, glowing in the darkness. Where was he? He tried breathing, finding it extremely hard, seeing that there was a gas mask attached to his face. Gas mask? Was he in a hospital? What was he doing in a hospital? He managed to calm down and take a look at his surroundings. Which got him into a panic again. What kind of hospital was this? He wasn't in a a nice, soft hospital bed. He was in a fucking beaker! Like a fucking test tube sample!

He suddenly felt a jolt of pain shoot through his head. He groaned into the gas mask. His mind was racing with unanswered questions. Where was he? What was this place? How did he get here? However the one question that repeatedly stabbed at the back of his mind was: _Who_ was he?

Even though he couldn't find the answers to these questions in the recesses of his mind, he did know that it would probably be a good idea to escape from this place. He lifted his hand to tap the glass, the strange liquid around him, feeling strangely heavy. The glass made a solid _thunking _sound. Probably reinforced, maybe even bulletproof. There was barely any chance that he could break through it with his bare fists but it was worth a try.

He slowly drew his fist back and lunged forward with a single thrust. He felt a strange sensation run through his arm as he threw his fist forward. His fist met the glass with a dull thud. His punch seemed ineffective. Then suddenly from where his fist had contacted the glass, spider-line cracks appeared, spreading quickly. With a loud _crack _the glass exploded into infinitesimal pieces. With the glass barrier gone, the liquid quickly drained out of the tube and he tumbled out, landing on the cold, hard floor.

Before he even got to enjoy his first breath of freedom, an alarm went off, blaring its message throughout the building.

"_ALERT! ALERT! Test subject xxx1 has escaped his cell. Repeat! Test subject xxx1 has escaped his cell."_

The said 'test subject' gripped his head. Why the hell was the alarm so fucking loud. It felt like it was invading his senses, burrowing deep into his mind.

"Guess that's me. Damn, that was fast." he murmured to himself. Already he could hear the sounds of guards rushing around the corner, heading towards him. He barely had time to prepare before two guards burst through the door.

He looked up as they raised their guns.

"Don't aim for any vital areas. Hojo needs him alive." the higher ranking soldier barked at the other one.

_'Hojo? Why did that sound so familiar?'_ he wondered as he saw the soldiers starting to press down on the triggers.

Then time seemed to slow down. He lunged forward, towards the two guards aiming their guns at him. The chatter of their automatic weapons rang out and a spray of bullets brushed past his hair as they hit the empty space he was in just a moment ago.

The guards paused, surprised by his unnatural speed, attempted to reach for their close combat weapons. That little bit of hesitation was all he needed. He drove his fist into the gut of the guard he labeled as the higher rank. The guard keeled over immediately and he made sure the guard wouldn't be waking up any time soon with a knee to the face.

The other guard froze, stunned by the turn of events and was greeted with an elbow to the face, effectively knocking him out.

"Sloppy..." he muttered as he looked down at the guards unconscious forms. As he looked down he noticed quite belatedly that he was showing quite a bit of skin. In fact he was was stark naked.

"Hunh. Maybe they were distracted by this?" He mumbled, looking down.

He kneeled down and started tugging off one of the guard's pants.

"Sorry about this. Normally I would treat you to dinner and a movie first but I'm kind of in a rush." he muttered as he pulled on the pants. He was about to reach for the shirt as well when he heard the commotion outside. It seemed like more guards would be arriving very soon.

_'Shit no time'_ he grabbed the knife that the guard dropped. It wasn't much but it was better than nothing. He slowly cracked open the door and peered out into the hallway. All clear. He moved stealthily down the hall, checking around every corner before he made the turn. He needed some more clothes and some better weapons. But where could he find these?

_'Floor 49...Huh?' _Somewhere in the deep recesses of his mind, he remembered the storage and changing rooms on floor 49. But how? He was pretty sure that he had never set foot here before, outside of being trapped in a test tube for god knows how long. He decided to follow the voice in his head, seeing as he had no other clue on the format of the building.

_'But where are the elevators?' _he wondered as he made his way down the hall.

_'Walk straight, turn left and then turn left again.' _the voice sounded again in his head. His surroundings looked familiar but it was all a hazy blur in his mind.

He made it to the elevator and when it arrived, pushed the button for the 49th floor. When the elevator reached that floor, he once again followed the directions his subconscious was giving him. He made his way to the weapon and materia room but discovered there was a ID lock for the door.

_'Shit' _had he really come all this way just to reach a dead end? Then as he looked down, he noticed that the pants he 'borrowed' had the guard's ID hanging off a belt loop.

He quickly scanned the card and entered before any wandering soldiers could spot him. He gave the room a once-over. It was filled with various types of weapons and armor. He picked the nearest weapon at hand. It was a pair of ornate katanas. They were very well-designed and the metal seemed very well-tempered; however he felt a sense of nausea as he looked at them and he quickly placed them down.

He rummaged through the rest of the weapons, but nothing caught his eye. They were all well-designed weapons but they didn't have 'that feel'.

Then suddenly, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. There, located on the far side of the room was something that sparked a feeling of familiarity. He walked closer, studying it. It was a massive broadsword, almost as tall and wide as him. It gave off an eerie blue glow and he swore that as he reached out a hand to grab it, that it hummed with a form of recognition. He braced himself as he went to pick it up, expecting it to be as heavy as it looked, but was surprised when he found that he could lift it easily with one hand.

_'Wow, must be some type of new material' _he mused as he studied the sword carefully. The metal definitely gave off a sort of blue sheen and there were runes located along the edges of the blade. There was a large cross imprinted where the blade met the hilt. The hilt, itself had to have been 12 inches at least, as he could easily hold it with both of his large hands.

He gave it a few practice swings, still marveling at how light it felt. Satisfied that he had found a suitable weapon, he set on finding some suitable clothes that he could wear for the time being. He quickly found a pair of boots that fit him and slipped them on. He then grabbed a nearby vest and slipped it onto his bare torso. He fingered the cloth; it seemed to consist of some type of bulletproof material. It didn't provide any protection for his arms and wouldn't provide any protection against harsh weather conditions but it did protect most of his vital areas. He grabbed a pair of sunglasses in a vain attempt to try and hide his facial features namely his glowing eyes.

He then, padded his way to one of the numerous supply pods and proceeded to open it, rummaging through the various materia inside. There was quite a nice selection and he soon pocketed a Fire, Barrier, Haste and Drain. He also pocketed a few potions and ethers.

_'All set. Now to get out of this place...' _he thought to himself as he strapped on the enormous broadsword to his back. He exited after checking the hallway was clear. He walked down the hall and turned the corner and...ran right into a wandering patrol unit.

"There he is, the escapee! Get him!" yelled one of the patrolmen, gesturing wildly towards him.

_'Shit. Looks like I have pretty bad luck' _he silently cursed as he examined the small unit in front of him.

He did a quick head-count. Eight guys. Not such a bad number but it was nothing to sneeze at either. It looked like there was no way to pass them without initiating combat and the little voice in his head told him that those were the only elevators and staircases on the floor. The only options he had were to either plow through them or turn around and hide out somewhere. The second option was a definite no-no. The small patrol would definitely call in the rest of the troops to this floor and he didn't want to be cornered in some room with no way to escape.

_'Shit' _he noticed one of the patrolmen already radioing for back-up _'Why the hell are they so concerned about one escapee?" _he wondered as he wracked his brains, trying to figure out exactly what he had done to warrant this.

"Drop your weapon and get down!" the leader of the patrol yelled at him, breaking him out of his thoughts.

He raised both hands, palms facing outwards, the universal sign of 'Hey I'm unarmed and I won't do anything rash' but inwardly he was already thinking of the best way to take out the soldiers. Eight wasn't such a bad number and if they were anything like the guards from before, it would be a cakewalk. He looked at the guns trained upon him, ready to fire if he made the slightest movement.

He just prayed that he was fast enough. Suddenly he dropped to one knee and pulled out the knife he took from the guard. A rain of bullets whizzed over his head. He smiled grimly, it seemed to be happening a lot today.

In a single second, he was already among their ranks. Before they could even react he already took two out. A clearly flustered guard tried shooting at him even though he was in close-range and ended up hitting one of his own comrades.

_'Three down...'_

He spun around on the ground and stabbed a guard in the back of the leg effectively cutting the tendons and sending the man to his knees. A quick left jab knocked the man out.

_'Four down...'_

He pulled the knife out and threw it at a guard attempting to draw his pistol. The man clutched at his throat as he sank to the floor, gargling his death cry.

_'Five down...'_

He did a quick head over feet roll, ending up on his back in an awkward position. He rocked his body backwards and using his arms sent his body up vertically and his boots into the face of one of the guards.

_'Six'_

The last two guards just stood there trembling in fear. They couldn't quite comprehend what had just happened. The fighting had only took about 10 seconds and they could barely follow what the escapee did. He just walked slowly up to them. They had already dropped their weapons and he was pretty sure they had pissed their pants. He wrinkled his nose and had a sudden urge to crack a joke. He managed to ignore this urge and grabbed both their heads, bashing them together in a comical fashion. They collapsed to the floor and he dusted off his hands.

_'Seven and eight. Didn't even have to draw the sword.' _the man thought smugly as he headed towards the elevator. Suddenly he realized that taking the elevator wouldn't be such a bad idea as they could be coming up that way and they could easily cut the power to it. He was further convinced that waiting for the elevator would be a bad idea by the sound of gunfire. He turned around quickly, a squad of about 15 soldiers were rushing down the hall towards him.

_'Shit they had reinforcements on this floor?' _he swore as he rushed over to the staircase and kicked the door open. He jumped from one flight to another as bullets rained down upon him. Then he realized that bullets were coming from below as well.

_'What the hell?' _he thought as he looked down. There were about a few dozen soldiers rushing up the stairs. Shit, they had blocked off the staircases as well. He was trapped from both sides.

What floor was he on? He went ran to the nearest door and kicked it down. A quick glance confirmed that he was nowhere near the 1st floor and the exit.

The sounds of pounding feet revealed another squad of soldiers rushing down the hall towards him. He turned head and ran. Yells and gunfire revealed that the end of the hallway was also blocked off. He quickly turned a corner and realized that there was nowhere left to run. He had run straight into an intersection and soldiers had blocked off all the halls. He slowly backed up, pressing himself up against the glass windows. It was either jump or just give himself up. He was still at least 30 floors up but there was no way in hell he was going to let himself get captured.

"It's been fun guys." he said with a cockeyed grin before turning and barreling into the glass window, shattering it into a million pieces.

The soldiers stared at the empty space for a second before rushing forwards. They stared at the rapidly falling body. One radioed in for more back-up.

"Subject has jumped. I repeat subject has jumped. We need ground troops immediately. Send a retrieval team immediately. Call in the Turks while you're at it."

He sped towards the ground, accelerating faster and faster as the laws of physics were set into motion. Wind rushed by his ears and his eyes started to water. He knew he had to turn his body around less he wanted to have his face meet the ground at 100 miles per hour. What a greeting that would be. He twisted awkwardly and somehow managed to have his feet face the ground. The ground that was approaching rather quickly. He braced himself, hoping that he would at least be able to crawl away if both his legs happened to break.

He landed with a loud _boom. _He was forced onto one knee as the ground underneath him cracked under the pressure, leaving him in a tiny crater. He stood up slowly, surprised that he had obtained no injuries whatsoever.

_'Huhn, maybe my luck ain't so bad after all.' _he mused. Then he heard the yells and pounding feet of numerous soldiers.

_'Or maybe not...'_ he mulled as he began to run, pushing it to high-gear.

After a while, he slowed down, determining that he ran far enough to be safe for a while. He turned back and was surprised to find the huge building he had escaped from, a tiny figure in the distance.

_'How fast was I going?' _he wondered. He was also surprised that he wasn't out-of-breath at all after that whole incident. _'You would think I would be a little out of shape after being stuck in that test tube after god knows how long.' _

He was surprised that he could make out the sign on the building from so far away. _Shinra Electric Company. _ He would keep that name in mind.

He studied his surroundings. He was in a city, that was for sure. A rather bustling city in fact. A sudden pang of pain shot through his brain. This city was so familiar and yet at the same time not.

Lost in some place he didn't know, with no memories and no clues and a nagging headache, he felt despairingly lost.

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**Woot first chapter done. Good? Bad? Makes you wanna puke? Reviews please. I'll continue this if I determine there is enough interest. **


	2. Fragments

**Cookie for those who tried guessing who it was. I won't say who it is yet but I think it'll be easy to figure out sooner or later. Thanks to Strych9 for the single review even though they weren't sure if they liked this or not. **

**And if you're a little confused about his sword, try picturing Arngrim's sword from Valkyrie Profile, except blue and has a cross on the blade.**

**Like I said, this is an AU telling of FFVII. I'll try to stick to the general plot line but there will be some major changes.**

**Disclaimer: Square Enix owns. Like seriously. Like everything.**

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Tseng looked balefully at the man raving in front of him, narrowing his eyes in disgust. Normally he wouldn't show such emotions, especially to someone considered a higher-up, but Hojo was a special case.

Quite frankly, he found the scientist disgusting. The man had a God complex and was indisputable evil. Tseng saw what he did to his failed experiments as the Turks were usually called in to dispose of them. The man had no respect for life and the worst thing was that he believed he was making the world a better place. If he had a choice, Tseng would've pulled out his gun and shot the man right in the face, then and there. But he didn't have a choice. He was a Turk and duty was duty. Even if it meant he had to take orders from a man like Hojo.

"...how could you let him escape? Do you know how important that sample was? Years of research went into that thing! Do you know how hard it was to find a specimen like that?" the mad scientist ranted, spittle flying from his open mouth.

Tseng found his trigger finger twitching as he calmly replied, "Unfortunately your team called us too late. When we arrived there was no trace of the subject anywhere near the building."

"You guys should've arrived quicker! And the subject still had pure anesthetic running through his system! There was no way he could've gotten that far! I need that man back alive! He's the only living specimen to have multiple successful experiments in him!" The scientist gestured wildly with his hands. He was beyond frustrated. This would make the fifth experiment that escaped his clutches.

Tseng's eyebrows twitched slightly, his restrained expression of surprise. This new development was quite unheard of.

"I will make sure to send out a search team immediately. I will also require the complete file on the subject."

"NO!" the man basically screamed, "I want _you_ to personally go and bring him back, _alive_."

"I am afraid that is impossible." Tseng replied calmly, unfazed by the man's outburst. "I have recently received rumors that Sephiroth has been spotted near Junon and I will have to go and confirm this."

At the sound of this news the scientist's eyes darkened. Sephiroth. The renegade. Perhaps he could kill two birds with one stone. He started muttering darkly to himself, "He should not have regained his memories yet...perhaps the name Sephiroth will give him a jolt...yes...he could kill Sephiroth or at least try and I can observe his powers..."

The mad scientist grabbed a thick yellow manila envelope and shoved it into Tseng's hands, all the while still muttering, "...so much for my vacation...dammit how could this happen?"

Tseng stared at the man with disinterest, tucking the folder under one arm.

"Very well, I will excusing myself then" Tseng gave a small bow and exited the lab.

_'I wonder who this test subject is and why he's so important' _Tseng mused as he flipped open the file. His eyebrows shot up in surprise. This...this was...How could this be?

"So he's still alive...It seems that his luck is as bad as ever." he murmured as he stared at the glowing blue eyes that stared back at him.

* * *

He looked around him, trying to spot something familiar so he could at least have a clue on where to go from here. He groaned as he rubbed his back. Sleeping in a dark alley, on hard concrete was not his idea of fun.

His stomach growled, reminding him of his empty gut. He rummaged through his pockets. Luckily the pair of pants he pilfered had some spare money in the pockets. Enough for a decent meal at least.

He blinked as a gust of wind blew his hair into his eyes.

Maybe a haircut as well.

He shivered as a stronger gust of wind blew by, as he rubbed his bare arms.

Some clothes would be nice too.

He scratched the back of his head as he tried to spot something that looked remotely like a restaurant. But he spotted a hair salon and a clothing store first, conveniently located right next to each other.

_'Might as well look pretty before a meal' _he thought as he approached the hair salon. It looked a bit run-down and the giant scissor lights placed above the name _Cheap Cutz _flickered on and off. The Z of _Cutz _was dangling precariously, looking as if it could fall at any second.

He entered, the soft tinkling of a bell announcing his presence.

"Welcome to Cheap Cutz. Oooooooh..." a chipper blonde girl greeted him. She rushed towards and dragged him by his arm to an empty seat, "Sit right here, handsome. We'll fix you up right away. You might want to put your sword down somewhere though." she said, eying the giant sword strapped to his back.

"Uh..ok" he seemed a bit overwhelmed as he shook off his sword and placed it next to him with a huge thud.

"How would you like it?" the girl asked, ruffling his hair and picking out a few strands here and there, "And has anyone ever told you that you have really nice hair?"

He blinked, "Uh...thanks. Um...short I guess? Shorter?"

"I know just the thing," the girl exclaimed giving his hair one last inspection. She pulled out a pair of scissors. "Whoops. Gonna need to take those glasses off."

He turned towards her as he let her pull off his sunglasses. He blinked once. Everything seemed...brighter.

"Oh wow. Wow. You have gorgeous eyes, you know that?"

He took a quick glance at the mirror in front of him. A pair of glowing crimson eyes stared back at him. He flashed the girl a quick grin, "Thanks. You have pretty eyes too."

The girl blushed and gave him a light tap on the shoulder, "Oh pshaw. You're just being nice."

He gave her another grin but didn't say anything. He was feeling rather disconcerted after seeing his own eyes. He felt like they weren't his. He didn't know how to explain it but they didn't feel like him.

"Close your eyes. This won't take very long."

He closed his burning red eyes and tried to relax. He felt strangely at ease. Then suddenly a fragment of a memory flashed through his mind.

"_Your hair's getting really long. If you keep letting it grow, you'll look like a girl." the girl in front of him giggled as she studied his features._

"_Not my fault. I don't have any time to go get a haircut. And during my free time I always come here to visit you." he grumbled, crossing his arms in front of his chest._

"_Are you saying you don't like spending time with me?" she teased, a twinkle in her eye. _

"_No," he frowned, "I'm saying I would rather look like a girl if it gave me more time to spend with my girl." _

"_Aw...you're sweet," she blushed, holding her hands behind her back, "But you really do need a haircut. Wouldn't want your hair covering up your handsome face."_

"_So you admit that I'm handsome?" he grinned wolfishly at her. _

"_Maybe..." she turned away. Suddenly she turned back, clapping her hands together as if she was struck by a great idea, "I know! I'll cut your hair for you!"_

_He eyed her warily, "Do you know how to cut hair?"_

_She smiled, "It can't be that different from pruning flowers, right?"_

"_I'm not so sure about that...How about this? I'll let you cut my hair if I get to cut yours." he attempted to compromise. _

"_But I don't need a haircut. And I've seen the way you swing around your sword. There's no way I'm letting you near my hair," she frowned._

"_I don't know..."_

"_Oh come on Za-"_

"There! All done!" the sudden exclamation brought him out of his flashback. Who was that? She seemed so familiar but her features were hazy and he couldn't remember anything about her. She was also about to say his name. What was his name? It started with a Z, that was all he got before the memory fragment ended.

"So? What do you think?" he was brought out of his thoughts by the blonde's chipper voice. He looked up at the mirror. His hair was a lot shorter and was spiked back in a fashion that reminded him of a porcupine. Some hair flopped across his forehead and two bangs framed his face on both sides. He smiled. He felt...normal. He didn't know how to explain it but he felt more like himself.

"I like it..." he breathed. "How much do I owe you?" he asked as he got out of his chair.

"Well, normally a haircut's 10 gil but...since you're such a cutie, 5 gil."

He pulled out a 10 bill and handed it to her and went to strap on his sword. She stared at the bill in her hands, "But I said it's only 5 gil."

"I know. The rest's a tip. Since you're such a cutie." he flashed a grin as he headed towards the door.

She blushed, "Come visit us again"

He gave a single wave, not turning back. The tinkling of the bell announced his exit. As he left, she realized she forgot to ask him for his name.

* * *

He exited the clothing store, decked out in his new outfit. He sported a black sweatshirt, with a gold dragon design in the front. When had they started selling clothes like this? It wouldn't really be successful in keeping him low-profile but he had to admit, it was really nice and warm. He traded in his standard SOLDIER pants for a pair of black cargoes with numerous deep pockets, something that was always useful.

His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he hadn't eaten yet. He spotted a shop further down the street that had people going in and out. He walked briskly, not really caring what kind of food the place served. As he walked closer, he noticed the sign _Seventh Heaven. _He scratched his head. Somehow that name sounded familiar but the place itself did not trigger any memories whatsoever.

He shrugged and entered. It was a nice little place and seemed crowded compared to the empty streets outside. There were several oak tables set up and numerous men occupied the seats, drinking, arguing and playing cards. It fact, it looked very much like a...

_'Oh crud...'_ he thought, he had walked into a bar not a restaurant as he was hoping it was. His suspicions were confirmed when he looked to his left and spotted the bar counter, where a old man was wiping glasses and pouring drinks.

He took a seat in front of the bar. The bartender raised an eyebrow, obviously curious about the mysterious man with a giant sword strapped to his back.

"What'll you have, bud?" the bartender asked still wiping a glass.

"I don't suppose you have anything to eat do you?" he asked hopefully, even though he already knew the answer.

The bartender gave him a curious look, "Well this is a bar and we're typically not suppose to use the kitchen for customers."

He sighed, "Didn't think so. Gimme a bottle of your strongest stuff." He hoped that if he got drunk enough he would forget how hungry he was.

"Oi old man! Where's Tifa? I haven't seen her in so long. Miss her," slurred one of the customers at a table.

'_Tifa?' _at the sound of the name, his ears pricked up.

"She went on some type of journey with some of her friends. Last I heard they were at Kalm or somewhere. You know I heard that..." the bartender's voice lowered to a hush, "that they were chasing after Sephiroth or something."

He spluttered as he nearly choked of his drink. Sephiroth! That was a name that he definitely recognized. But from where?

The bartender gave him a weird look, "You all right man?"

He coughed several more times, getting rid of the alcohol that went down his windpipe. He nodded slowly, "Yeah...this Sephiroth guy. Who is he?" he managed to wheeze out.

The bartender raised an eyebrow, "You don't know who..." he lowered his voice, "Sephiroth is?"

"Enlighten me."

"Well Sephiroth used to be this great General in SOLDIER and he was the one responsible for stopping the war between Shinra and Wutai. But after some incident in Nibelheim he went mad and now he's just going around killing random people and spouting nonsense about cleansing the earth."

"Ok...now explain to me why you have to whisper whenever you're talking about him?"

"Rumor says, he can be everywhere at the same time. No one wants to anger him of course," the bartender looked around with narrowed eyes as if Sephiroth could've been in the bar at that exact moment.

The man scratched his chin thoughtfully. How would he, know Sephiroth, a great General? But it was as good of a place to start as anywhere else.

"So...how can I get to this Kalm place?"

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**I would really like some feedback please so I will know if I should continue this or not. I do not want to write like 50 pages to only find out that there is barely any interest. 3-5 reviews would be nice before I post up my next chapter. **


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